Navy Yard: America's ho-hum response to mass shooting, gun control

President Obama used a memorial service for the victims of the Navy Yard shooting Sunday to make another impassioned appeal to reform gun ownership laws.

President Obama used a memorial service for the victims of the Navy Yard shooting Sunday to make another impassioned appeal to reform gun ownership laws.

CaptionVideo: Navy Yard reopens three days after massacre

The Washington Navy Yard has reopened for normal operations with returning employees saying they feel unsettled about the shooting there earlier this week. Some were ready, others anxious about returning to work. (Sept. 19)

The Washington Navy Yard has reopened for normal operations with returning employees saying they feel unsettled about the shooting there earlier this week. Some were ready, others anxious about returning to work. (Sept. 19)

Robin Abcarian

We’re all feeling a little desensitized now, aren’t we?

Another mass shooting. Ho hum.

Nothing will change, so why bother making noises about the gun sickness that pervades this country?

But these shooters are madmen. They watch too many violent video games. What can you do?

Nothing, really.

All we have are symbolic gestures, like the one made Tuesday by Starbucks.

In an open letter couched as a “respectful request,” Starbucks President and CEO Howard Schultz announced that his chain does not want people bringing guns into its stores or outdoor seating areas anymore unless they are law enforcement personnel.

Until now, Starbucks’ policy has been to welcome armed customers in states that allow people to openly carry weapons.

Schultz said that the coffee chain has grown tired of being used as an unwilling pawn in the gun debate.

“Pro-gun activists have used our stores as a political stage for media events misleadingly called ‘Starbucks Appreciation Days’ that disingenuously portray Starbucks as a champion of 'open carry.' To be clear: we do not want these events in our stores. Some anti-gun activists have also played a role in ratcheting up the rhetoric and friction, including soliciting and confronting our customers and partners.”

People who continue to bring guns into Starbucks, wrote Schultz, will not be asked to leave. Nor will the company put up any signs about its new policy.

So what will change? Not much. It may tick off a few gun toters. It may endear Starbucks to those who have grown sick of our swaggering gun culture.

But in the end, will it prevent the next mass shooting?

Of course not.

When it comes to policies aimed at preventing gun violence, we're just shooting blanks.